1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a remote User Interface (UI) system using a remote UI and more particularly to a method and an apparatus for proving a terminal with a remote UI list in a remote user interface system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Numerous studies for improving home-network technology have been actively done by many standardizing associations in the industry, such as the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA), Home Audio-Video Interoperability (HAVi), Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) and the like.
In the home-network technology, Remote User Interface (RUI) technology may be adopted so as to allow one apparatus to control another apparatus. Generally, RUI technology is based on client-server architectures, wherein a RUI client fetches a UI from a RUI server, so that a user at the RUI client can control the RUI server through the UI. Hereinafter, the RUI is referred to as a remote UI and the RUI server is referred to as a remote server.
FIG. 1 is a flow chart for illustrating a method for providing a UI list in a conventional remote UI system. FIG. 1 illustrates a third terminal 10 discovering a second terminal 11 and then making a request for the UI list to fetch the latter. In FIG. 1, the third terminal 10 corresponds to a RUI client and the second terminal 11 corresponds to another terminal, which includes an embedded server enabling to provide the remote UI upon request of the third terminal 11.
Referring to FIG. 1, the third terminal 10 discovers the second terminal 11 and then fetches the remote UI list included in the second terminal by making the request for the remote UI list. Thereafter, the third terminal 10 selects one of the remote UIs in the remote UI list and requests the second terminal 11 for the selected remote UI. Then, the second terminal 11 transmits the requested remote UI to the third terminal 10.
In the conventional method, if the third terminal requests the second terminal for the UI list, the second terminal simply provides the UI list included in the second terminal. That is, when the third terminal requests the second terminal for the UI list, it is not possible for the third terminal to fetch another UI list included in another remote server (not shown) interconnected with the second terminal. Also, it is not possible to combine the remote UI list included in the second terminal with the remote UI list included in the remote server for use.